Best Practices and Innovative Solutions to Overcome Barriers to Delivering Policy, Systems and Environmental Changes in Rural Communities

Abstract

To better understand the barriers to implementing policy; systems; and environmental (PSE) change initiatives within Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program-Education (SNAP-Ed) programming in U.S. rural communities; as well as strategies to overcome these barriers, this study identifies: (1) the types of nutrition-related PSE SNAP-Ed programming currently being implemented in rural communities; (2) barriers to implementing PSE in rural communities; and (3) common best practices and innovative solutions to overcoming SNAP-Ed PSE implementation barriers. This mixed-methods study included online surveys and interviews across fifteen states. Participants were eligible if they: (1) were SNAP-Ed staff that were intimately aware of facilitators and barriers to implementing programs, (2) implemented at least 50% of their programming in rural communities, and (3) worked in their role for at least 12 months. Sixty-five staff completed the online survey and 27 participated in interviews. Barriers to PSE included obtaining community buy-in, the need for relationship building, and PSE education. Facilitators included finding community champions; identifying early “wins” so that community members could easily see PSE benefits. Partnerships between SNAP-Ed programs and non-SNAP-Ed organizations are essential to implementing PSE. SNAP-Ed staff should get buy-in from local leaders before implementing PSE. Technical assistance for rural SNAP-Ed programs would be helpful in promoting PSE.

Nutrition and Vulnerable Groups

“…Similarly to developing countries, cities and neighborhoods in developed countries are experiencing a greater emergence of vulnerable populations, thus requiring an informed workforce to support these communities. This workforce needs to identify modifiable factors that can be incorporated into future schemes and food security interventions in order to efficiently manage food shortages and address drivers in the immediate and broader geographical locations [17,18]. A greater understanding from the workforce is required, as evidence suggests a divergence in views between those who address the problem and those with the lived experience of food insecurity [19].…”

“…To better understand the practice and policy environment of the broader food system, barriers and enablers have been examined [17]. This issue has outlined novel applications of a Systemic Innovation Lab, which capture initiatives within a defined local geographical area that support community food security [18].…”

“Spiraling up”: Using ripple effect mapping to evaluate how an extension volunteer program increases community development capacity

“…Community-level impacts of health and wellness programs can be harder to conceptualize and measure, but are important as community health professionals are increasingly encouraged to work at the community level, where individual-level outcomes are only part of the intended results of a program (Raison, 2010;Washburn, 2017). This shift has especially been true in the Family and Consumer Science (FCS) Extension program area, where federally funded programs that traditionally focus on nutrition education (such as the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program-Education-SNAP-Ed-and the Expanded Food and Nutrition Education Program-EFNEP) now require programming that will affect changes in policies, systems, and environments (PSE;Haynes-Maslow, Osborne, & Jilcott Pitts, 2018;Washburn, 2017). Washburn (2017) presents the idea that volunteers are perfectly positioned to help FCS educators "reach people where they are" and focus on community engagement.…”

Integrating Food Systems and Local Food in Family and Consumer Sciences: Perspectives from the Pilot Extension Master Food Volunteer Program

“…These PSE strategies focus on changing community food environments to make healthy food more available, affordable, and accessible to consumers (Committee on Accelerating Progress in Obesity Prevention, Food and Nutrition Board, & Institute of Medicine, 2012). For example, PSE changes might include offering healthier food through school cafeterias, congregate nutrition sites, food pantries, corner stores, faith communities, or other community sites, or working with these sites to build walking trails or other opportunities for physical activity (Haynes-Maslow et al, 2018). Often, direct education in the form of cooking demonstrations or taste tests accompanies PSE changes in community locations to help support consumers as they increase their consumption of healthy food.…”

“…Often, direct education in the form of cooking demonstrations or taste tests accompanies PSE changes in community locations to help support consumers as they increase their consumption of healthy food. As a result, many PSE projects include local food, such as working with farmers markets to increase community access, connecting food pantries with sources of local food, or designing nutrition education in school settings to incorporate gardening (Haynes-Maslow et al, 2018;Koch et al, 2017).…”